Four places you should visit during Dragon Boat Festival travel

Introduction: The Dragon Boat Festival is China’s first festival selected as a world intangible cultural heritage. The Dragon Boat Festival is jointly declared by Hubei, Hunan, and Jiangsu provinces. The *** includes four parts, namely the "Suzhou Dragon Boat Festival Customs" in Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province, the "Qu Yuan's Hometown Dragon Boat Festival Customs" in Zigui County, Hubei Province, and the Huangshi Dragon Boat Festival. The "Xise Shenzhou Festival" in the city and the "Dragon Boat Festival Customs on the Miluo River" in Miluo City, Hunan. Therefore, the most worthwhile places to travel during the Dragon Boat Festival holiday should be Suzhou, Zigui, Miluo and Huangshi.

Qu Yuan’s hometown---Zigui

Zigui County is located in Yichang City, Hubei Province, China, at the throat of Sichuan and Hubei, on both sides of the Xiling Gorge of the Yangtze River. Zigui County was established in the Western Han Dynasty. Zigui is the first county in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area and the hometown of Qu Yuan. The name of Zigui County comes from "Shui Jing Zhu", "Qu Yuan had a wise sister who came back after hearing that Yuan was exiled, so she was named Sister Gui". "Zi" evolved from "sister".

Who said that the Dragon Boat Festival came from, and the eternal legend is Qu Yuan? The people of Quxiang have a strong Dragon Boat Festival complex, and the Zigui Dragon Boat Festival folk custom has a long history and has its own unique cultural space and expression. In Zigui, the Dragon Boat Festival is also called Duanyang. The fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar is the Little Dragon Boat Festival, the fifteenth day of the fifth month is the Big Dragon Boat Festival, and the twenty-fifth day of the fifth month is the Duanyang Festival. The Dragon Boat Festival is held three times, mainly to commemorate Qu Yuan, a doctor of Sanlu of the Chu State during the Warring States Period who was born in Lepingli, Zigui.

During the Dragon Boat Festival in Zigui, rice dumplings and dada are essential foods on the table. When the locals make rice dumplings, they put a red date inside the rice dumplings and sing a unique "Zongzi Song": "It has edges and corners, it has a heart and a liver; it is innocent, it has been suffering for half a life" to commemorate it. Qu Yuan died after being wronged. In places where glutinous rice is not produced in high mountains, large, soft cakes are steamed from wheat flour ground from freshly harvested wheat to replace rice dumplings.

Quxiang people grind realgar into powder and pour it into wine to make realgar wine, which becomes a special drink during the Dragon Boat Festival. In addition to drinking part of it, you should also apply some on the child's forehead and behind the ears to prevent mosquito bites.

When Zigui people celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival, they also make some small ornaments. Put mugwort, realgar, old garlic stalks, Sichuan peppercorns, peppers, ginkgo, walnuts, melon seeds or five Chinese medicinal materials into a small cloth bag made in advance, and wrap it with colorful thread to become a small and beautiful sachet. Worn on the chest, it is not only used as decoration, but also to ward off evil spirits and prevent diseases.

In the early morning of the Dragon Boat Festival, when the dew is still wet, people go up the mountain to harvest mugwort, tie it with colorful ribbons when they return home, and hang them on both sides of the gate to ward off evil spirits and expel wind. In addition to harvesting mugwort for festivals on the same day, whenever you feel any pain or itching throughout the year, you can pick a few branches with garlic stalks, boil them in water, wash the affected area or soak your feet to relieve itching and dispel wind. Anti-inflammatory.

Among the people in Zigui, married daughters will return to their natal families on this day to reunite with their natal families and enjoy family happiness. Not only does the daughter want to return to her parents' home, but the elderly and children also have their own activities.

The old man wears a garland of mugwort leaves around his neck and sits comfortably in front of a basin filled with the fragrance of mugwort. His son or wife squats in front of the old man, slowly pouring water on the old man’s feet and holding the mugwort leaves. Massage gently on the old man's feet. Soaking the feet of the elderly during the Dragon Boat Festival is a form of filial piety in Qu Yuan's hometown.

At midnight, families reunite, relatives and friends gather together, and at the same time they celebrate the summer harvest. One or more families host the event, inviting villagers and neighbors to entertain themselves, dance the local Jiandong Flower Drum Opera, sing folk songs, and perform wind and percussion ensembles. Often staying up all night. At this point, the Dragon Boat Festival is over.

The Zigui Dragon Boat Festival is one of the living witnesses of China’s ancient Chu culture and Chinese Dragon Boat Festival customs. It vividly promotes and disseminates the spiritual character of Qu Yuan, one of the four major cultural celebrities in the world, and the traditional spirit of Chinese culture. Traditional ancestor worship and hero worship are humanized and entertaining, strengthen family affection, nostalgia and national feelings, strengthen the cohesion of social groups and nations, and promote the traditional Chinese national cultural identity.

Zigui tourist attractions include: Quyuan Temple, Jiuwan River, Sixi, Phoenix Mountain, and Lianzi Cliff.

Huangshi, the birthplace of Chinese bronze culture

Huangshi is located in the southeast of Hubei Province, on the south bank of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. The city was established in August 1950. It is one of the first two provincial municipalities established in Hubei Province after the founding of New China. It is the sub-central city of Wuhan City Circle, an important raw material industrial base in central China, and an open city along the Yangtze River approved by the State Council. Huangshi is one of the birthplaces of Chinese bronze culture and the cradle of modern Chinese national industry. Huangshi City has a profound industrial culture and a good industrial foundation. It is known as the "Hometown of Bronze", "Cradle of Steel", "Hometown of Cement" and "New Clothing City".

The Xisai Shenzhou Festival is held by Taoist priests and villagers in the Xisai Mountain area of ??Huangshi City to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival. The main activities include a series of ceremonies and activities such as sacrifices, parades, and launching the Shenzhou into the water. The Xisai Shenzhou Society has a history of more than 3,000 years. In the process of inheritance from generation to generation, strict and regular procedural content and ritual requirements have been formed. One month before the Dragon Boat Festival every year, which is the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, they will hold a groundbreaking ceremony for building the Shenzhou. From the eighth day of April to the fifth day of May, folk craftsmen who build boats come to Shenzhou Palace to build the hull of the boat. The dragon-shaped boat is 7 meters long, 2 meters wide and 5 meters high. It has magnificent and exquisite buildings and pavilions.

Except for a small amount of wood, the entire boat is mainly filled with thatch and rapeseed straw and wrapped in red cloth. Except for the main frame, the cabin is entirely made of bamboo and paper. In addition to the hull, there are also 108 gods who can exorcise demons and eliminate disasters. Sitting upright in the main cabin of Shenzhou was Dr. Qu Yuan. From the opening ceremony of the dragon boat construction and the building of the Shenzhou, to the Taoist priests presiding over the ceremony to consecrate the Shenzhou on the fifth day of May, to the official Shenzhou meeting from May 15th to 18th, the entire event lasted 40 days, which is the current domestic Dragon Boat Festival time A long prayer and memorial service.

During the official festival, local Chu operas were sung day and night, and people from all over the country came to make wishes and seek blessings from the Shenzhou. At 8 o'clock in the morning on the 16th day of the fifth lunar month, Shenzhou goes out for a parade. Every household has to hang calamus and mugwort leaves at the door, set up an incense table at the door, burn incense candles, and place wine, tea, rice, fruits and other offerings. Every time they arrive at a house, the villagers will set off whips to greet them, scatter tea and rice, and offer sacrifices. On the night of the 17th day of the fifth lunar month, 48 ever-bright lanterns are lit for the Shenzhou and a vigil is held all night long. On the morning of May 18th in the lunar calendar, the Shenzhou came out of the palace. The Taoist priests and all the members of the Shenzhou Society jointly opened the way for the Shenzhou. 16 young and strong men carried the Shenzhou and respectfully sent it into the river. The water allowed the water to carry the dragon boat down the river and into the east. ocean. At this time, many fishing boats on the river placed incense and set up cases on the bows, fired firecrackers, and circled the Shenzhou three times to show off. On the embankment where the Shenzhou boarded the river, thousands of villagers clasped their hands and knelt down to worship the Shenzhou, praying that the Shenzhou would take away diseases, plagues, and disasters, and pray for good luck, happiness, and health in the new year. The Shenzhou Club is a traditional cultural activity of the Han nationality that is organized voluntarily and voluntarily by the people. It has the core themes of expelling plague, eradicating evil, eliminating disasters, curing diseases, and seeking safety, health, and longevity. Compared with the traditional eating of rice dumplings and hanging calamus and mugwort leaves, the Xisai Shenzhou Festival in Huangshi, Hubei Province has a unique charm.

Huangshi City has a superior geographical location and beautiful natural environment. Huangshi City District is surrounded by mountains and rivers, with the city in the mountains and the water in the city. It is surrounded by mountains and water, and has a beautiful environment. It has "three mountains and two lakes" (Dongfang Mountain, Xisai Mountain, Xiaolei Mountain, Cihu Lake, and Xiandao Lake). A scenic spot integrating natural landscape and human history. Huangshi is known as "half city with mountains and half city with lakes".

China's famous dragon boat city - Miluo

Miluo, referred to as Luocheng, belongs to Yueyang City, located in the northeast of Hunan Province, close to the east bank of Dongting Lake and the lower reaches of the Miluo River . Because there are Milu River and Luo River in the territory, its downstream is named Miluo River. Because of its famous city, it is "a famous dragon boat city in China". Miluo River is the place where Qu Yuan, a writer during the Warring States Period, sank himself. There are now Quzi Temple, Qu Yuan's Tomb and other historic buildings commemorating Qu Yuan.

The Miluo River originates from Xiushui County, Jiangxi Province, passes through Pingjiang and Miluo and enters Dongting. The total length is only 253.2 kilometers. Although it is not as wide and long as the Yangtze River and the Mississippi River, nor as ancient and splendid as the Yellow River and the Nile River, with Qu Yuan's astonishing leap on this river in 278 BC, May, Zaifu, and the During the Dragon Boat Festival, people have been repeating the story of using dragon boats to salvage the soul of Qu Zi. The drumbeat of the dragon boat race on this river has been heard all over the country, inside and outside the Great Wall, and in foreign countries. Miluo River has become a unique river among the many rivers in the world.

The Dragon Boat Festival on the banks of the Miluo River generally starts on the first day of the fifth lunar month and ends on the 15th day of the fifth lunar month. The entire festival has a long history, a wide range of people, rich diversity, rich culture, and fanaticism. participatory and far-reaching impact. The Dragon Boat Festival customs along the Miluo River include hosting a feast, eating rice dumplings, planting mugwort and hanging calamus, drinking realgar wine, and dragon boat racing. They also include carving dragon heads, stealing sacred trees, singing praises, launching dragon boats into the water, making dragon heads red, going to temples, offering sacrifices to dragons, and Qu and others all have mysterious rituals and unique cultural connotations, and they also left many Dragon Boat Festival folk songs such as "Ning desolate fields for a year, not losing boats in May". Watching dragon boats, returning to one's parents' home, saying goodbye to the Dragon Boat Festival, planting mugwort leaves, and drinking realgar wine have rich local meanings. Moreover, the above-mentioned customs and cultural scenes have been recorded in scattered written records since the Han Dynasty, such as Yan Yanzhi's "Ji Qu Yuanwen" in 424 AD, Wu Jun's "Xu Qi Xie Ji" and "Jingchu Shishi" written by Wu Jun in the early sixth century AD. "Ji", "Sui Shu" It is described in "Geography" and so on.

For thousands of years, people along the Miluo River have shown great importance and enthusiasm for the Dragon Boat Festival. On the Dragon Boat Festival, children wear new clothes, adults and elders wear the most solemn costumes, and girls and wives wear colorful clothes. During the dragon boat race in the morning, men, women and children from all over the country rushed to the venue in droves. In the middle of the river, the gongs and drums were noisy, and the trumpets were vibrating in all directions; on the bank, the shouts were shaking the earth, and the songs and laughter were thundering. It can be said that every nerve and cell of the participants is mobilized. People are completely immersed in the fierce competition and fanaticism of the race, and their hearts beat for their own side. At noon, there was a big banquet, drinking and chatting and laughing. In the afternoon, old operas were sung, firecrackers were set off, and the sound of gongs and drums, cheers, and frolics made it a mess. Throughout the festival, people reveled in the joy.

Miluo is rich in tourism resources. The main attractions are Miluo River, Quzi Temple, Shending Mountain, Bajing Cave, Ren Bishi’s former residence, the gate of Quzi Temple in Miluo River International Dragon Boat Race, Quzi Park, Pude View.

The thousand-year-old Quzi Temple is a national key cultural relic protection unit and a national youth patriotism education base. Quzi Temple Miluo River Scenic Area is a national key scenic spot and an important attraction on the golden line of Xiangchu cultural tourism.

The Ren Bishi Memorial Hall is a national 4A-level scenic spot, a national key cultural relics protection unit, a national patriotism education base, and a national red tourism classic scenic spot.

The Oriental Water Capital - Suzhou

Suzhou, also known as Wu in ancient times and simply Su, is also known as Gusu, Pingjiang, etc. It is located in the southeast of Jiangsu Province, in the middle of the Yangtze River Delta, east It faces Shanghai, Jiaxing to the south, Taihu Lake to the west, and the Yangtze River to the north. Suzhou is one of the first 24 national historical and cultural cities in China and the birthplace of Wu culture. Suzhou gardens are representatives of Chinese private gardens and are listed as a World Cultural Heritage by UNESCO.

The Han folk custom of the Dragon Boat Festival in Suzhou City is different from other regions in that it commemorates Wu Zixu, a famous general of the Wu Kingdom during the Spring and Autumn Period. The Dragon Boat Festival commemorating Wu Zixu is the most grand annual folk festival in Suzhou. It has a set of folk activities that are adapted to the local natural climate conditions, daily production and living habits, and economic and cultural characteristics. There are traditional projects such as making rice dumplings, racing dragon boats, hanging calamus, wearing sachets, and hanging Zhongkui statues to ward off ghosts. In 2009, Suzhou's Dragon Boat Festival customs were included in the "World Intangible Cultural Heritage" as one of the four important inheritance sites of the Chinese Dragon Boat Festival.

Dragon Boat Festival customs in Wudi, Suzhou:

Drinking realgar wine. The predecessor of Dragon Boat Festival realgar wine should be calamus wine. The leaves of calamus are shaped like swords, so they are called "Pu Jian", and because they grow close to water, they are also called "Shui Jian". The made calamus wine has the characteristics of warm nature and pungent taste. It is beneficial to the lungs and stomach and can prolong life. "Compendium of Materia Medica" records: "Calamus wine cures thirty-six winds, twelve paralysis, unblocks blood vessels, cures bone fistula, long-term use can improve the hearing and eyesight." ?

Hang sachets and insert mugwort leaves. The sachet is also called a sachet, a sachet, and a purse. The history of its production and wearing can be traced back to at least the Warring States Period. In Qu Yuan's "Li Sao", there are "Hujiangli" and "Pizhixi", which Ren Qiulan thought was admirable.

Eat rice dumplings during the Dragon Boat Festival. It is the most important thing for people in Suzhou. Every time on the eve of the Dragon Boat Festival, deep in the alleys of Suzhou, the red doors are ajar, and the mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law are sitting around in the hall, or on the roadside of Danshi, small rattan chairs are gathered around. , full of green Ruo leaves, the glistening glutinous rice, the aroma wafts in the evening, and the good neighbors bring bowls to each other, and exchange each other's craftsmanship, the taste is salty and how it looks, this is a rare thing in modern life With its ancient style, it is a gourmet food that Suzhou people talk about. ?Recalling my days in Suzhou, I was often familiar with the summer solstice feast. The bamboo in the zongxiang tube is tender, and the goose is crispy and fresh. ?

Dragon boat racing. Suzhou is the birthplace of the Dragon Boat Festival dragon boat race. "The Origin of Things" records: "The boat race started in Goujian, and today the dragon boat is also the same." The "Wuyue Chunqiu" written by Zhao Ye of the Han Dynasty also believed that the origin of the dragon boat originated from Gou Jian and was the loyal work of Zixu.

The earliest origin of Suzhou’s dragon boat racing is the Xumentang River, which is today’s Xujiang River. Shao Changheng, a poet of the Qing Dynasty, once said: "In May, the Xu River is angry, and the water is filled with joy and joy." By the Qing Dynasty, Suzhou's Dragon Boat Festival Dragon Boat Races were very popular and took place in many places, such as dragon boats, Chang and Xu gates, South and North Hao and Fengqiao West Road waterside. ?

Suzhou has always been famous for its beautiful landscapes and elegant gardens. It has the reputation of having the most beautiful gardens in the south of the Yangtze River and the best gardens in the south of the Yangtze River. It also has the characteristics of an ancient water town with small bridges and flowing water, and has the reputation of being the most beautiful garden in the east. ?

It is also known as the Water City.